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Modernizing Existing Markets

The APMCs are established as local authorities under the Maharashtra Agricultural Produce Marketing (Development & Regulation) Act 1963 (APMC Act) and the Rules made there under in the year 1967. The main objective of the Act is to regulate agricultural marketing of notified commodities and provide adequate protection to the producers from the exploitation of the buyers.

Approximately 40 to 50 % of the total agricultural production of the state is sold through regulated markets or the Agriculture Produce Market Committees (APMCs) in the State. The State has 294 main market yards and 612 sub market yards, and of these market yards, as many as 196 market yards trade in cattle and other livestock.

There is a provision in APMC Act that agricultural produce should be sold by open auction. However, there are rare instances of “Hatta System” of auction (auction taking place under cover of cloth on hand and making some signs by fingers under the cloth) found in some APMCs. There is a scope for bringing more transparency in auction systems. Many APMCs do not have modern infrastructure. This also needs to be developed.

The trade of livestock, especially cattle, sheep and goat, is done mainly in an unorganized way without any regulation and sale of animals does not take place on the basis of milk yield or body weight. There is a need to improve transparency in the transaction between the buyer and the seller for trade of livestock

Many of the APMCs market yards do not have basic market infrastructure facilities such as internal roads, drainage, electricity, water, weigh bridges, auction hall, trader shops, and unloading ramps. These markets are underdeveloped and are characterized by:

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The APMCs are established as local authorities under the Maharashtra Agricultural Produce Marketing (Development & Regulation) Act 1963 (APMC Act) and the Rules made there under in the year 1967. The main objective of the Act is to regulate agricultural marketing of notified commodities and provide adequate protection to the producers from the exploitation of the buyers.

Approximately 40 to 50 % of the total agricultural production of the state is sold through regulated markets or the Agriculture Produce Market Committees (APMCs) in the State. The State has 294 main market yards and 612 sub market yards, and of these market yards, as many as 196 market yards trade in cattle and other livestock.

There is a provision in APMC Act that agricultural produce should be sold by open auction. However, there are rare instances of “Hatta System” of auction (auction taking place under cover of cloth on hand and making some signs by fingers under the cloth) found in some APMCs. There is a scope for bringing more transparency in auction systems. Many APMCs do not have modern infrastructure. This also needs to be developed.

The trade of livestock, especially cattle, sheep and goat, is done mainly in an unorganized way without any regulation and sale of animals does not take place on the basis of milk yield or body weight. There is a need to improve transparency in the transaction between the buyer and the seller for trade of livestock

Many of the APMCs market yards do not have basic market infrastructure facilities such as internal roads, drainage, electricity, water, weigh bridges, auction hall, trader shops, and unloading ramps. These markets are underdeveloped and are characterized by:

(a) Produce is not cleaned before it is brought to market,
(b) Different qualities of produce are not sold separately,
(c) Produce is not graded before being sold,
(d) Produce is not sold by standard packages,
(e) Produce is sold with a lack of price information creating an atmosphere of uncertainty,
(f) Storage facilities are not used or not available and immediate sales have to be made.

This results in poor service in many of the markets to the stake holders including the farmers. Therefore, it is becoming imperative to improve the functioning of these market yards by providing infrastructure and training the manpower connected with management of these APMCs as per requirement. Therefore it is proposed to modernize 100 APMCs and 24 livestock markets under MACP.